A Good Day for Access to Justice
Jameson v. Desta, No. S230899 (Cal. Jul. 5, 2018). The Court of Appeal decision in this case bothered me so much that I contacted the plaintiff and offered to represent him pro bono. We got review...
View ArticleGet in Line, CalPERS!
PERS v. Santa Clara Valley Transp. Auth., No. C083355 (D3 May 29, 2018)So there’s an issue regarding the interpretation of the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act that keeps coming up in...
View ArticleRes Estoppel? Collateral Judicata?
Shine v. Williams-Sonoma, Inc., No B277513 (D2d4 May 29, 2018)Named Plaintiff in this class action was a class member in Class Action #1, a prior wage and hour case against his Employer. Class Action...
View ArticleThis Is Not an Interpleader
Pacer Foreclosure, Inc. v. Alfalo, No. B268589 (D2d6 May 30, 2018) Trustee conducts a foreclosure sale, which results in proceeds in excess of the loan. Borrower sues both Trustee and Buyer for...
View ArticleService Abroad ...
Rockefeller Tech. Inv. (Asia) VII) v. Changzhou Sinotype Tech. Co., Ltd., No. B272170 (D2d3 Jun 1, 2018)Plaintiff, a US-based investment fund, won a $414 million default arbitration judgment against...
View ArticleA More Precise Strike on Damages
Abbott Labs. v. Superior Court, No. D072577 (D4d1 May 31, 2018)This is the second time I’ve had the pleasure of writing about one of my own cases recently. This one’s a little older, but I’ve just...
View ArticleNot Sticking Together
Jensen v. The Home Depot, Inc., No. E067002 (D5 May 31, 2018)Home Depot gets sued by two employees. Their claims are based on similar disability discrimination theories. But it’s clear they don’t arise...
View ArticleSua Sponte, with a Side of Suggestion
Spector v. Spector, No. C084628 (D3 Jun. 4, 2018)A family court in San Joaquin County overseeing the divorce of Rachelle and Phil Spector* ordered Phil to pay a certain amount of temporary spousal...
View ArticleSweating the Facts on Remand
Strategic Concepts, LLC v. Beverly Hills Sch. Dist., No. B264478M (D2d6 Jun. 6, 2018) A while back, the Court of Appeal reversed and remanded a jury verdict for the plaintiff. The reversal was without...
View ArticleWaived!
Von Becelaere Ventures, LLC v. Zenovic, No. D0702620 (D4d1 Jun. 6, 2018)Construction dispute between a Builder and a Property Owner. The relevant contract has an arbitration clause. But Property Owner...
View ArticleDon't Shoot at the King When You Need to Hit His Bureaucracy
Templo v. State of California, No. A151094 (D1d3 Jun 18, 2018)Plaintiffs contend that Code of Civil Procedure § 631—which requires the posting of nonrefundable fees to preserve the right to jury...
View ArticleSanctions Never Seem to Stick, Vol. 2,482 ...
Moofly Prods., LLC v. Favila, No. B282084 (D2d1 Jun 22, 2018)Code of Civil Procedure § 1008(d) says that a party can get sanctions for an improper motion for reconsideration “as allowed by [§] 128.7.”...
View ArticleNot a Prior Agreement
Williams v. Las Posas, No. B282513 (D2d6 Jun. 27, 2018)Oh good. Another nursing home arbitration case. The Patient—who suffered a traumatic brain injury in a bike accident—had signed both an admittance...
View ArticleLost in Translation
Juarez v. Wash Depot Holdings, Inc., No. B282667 (D2d6 Jul. 3, 2018)As we hopefully all know by now, claims under the Labor Code Private Attorney General Act aren’t arbitrable. Recognizing that fact, a...
View ArticleApproved as to Form and Content
Monster Energy Co. v. Schechter, No. E066267 (D4d2 Aug. 13, 2108)A settlement agreement at issue in this case obliged "the parties and their attorneys” to keep the settlement confidential. Plaintiff’s...
View ArticleOBJECTION: WRONG!!!!
Webster v. Claremont Yoga, No. B279272 (Aug. 16, 2018)Customer at a Yoga Studio claims that an Instructor there hurt her back when he put her in various positions. Studio moves for summary judgment. In...
View ArticleInexcusable Neglect Can Still Merit a Continuance
Levingston v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., No. E066271 (D4d2 Aug 17, 2018)This is some kind of whistleblower case against Kaiser Permanente. Kaiser moved for summary judgment. Plaintiff...
View ArticleThe Condition/Covenant Conundrum
Colaco v. Cavotec SA, No. G052619 (D4d3 Aug. 10, 2018)This is a complicated breach of contract case arising from a sale of corporate assets. It addresses an issue of contract law that, while not...
View ArticleBecause CEQA!
Citizens Coalition Los Angeles v. City of L.A., No. B283480 (D2d2 Aug. 23, 2018)I don't really understand anything in this opinion. But the Court of Appeal turned Sad Target on Western and Sunset's...
View ArticleMichael Jackson Is Not Michael Jackson
Serova v. Sony Music Entm’t, No. B280526 (D2d2 Aug. 28, 2018)About a year and a half after Michael Jackson died, his Label release an album called Michael, which purported to contain his final...
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